Fattoush – Pita Bread Salad

Sweet cherry tomatoes mixed with savory scallions and crisp cucumbers come together to infuse their gorgeous flavors onto toasted pita bread. Then this scrumptious blend is tossed with Romaine lettuce, parsley, and fresh mint. Hearty yet refreshing light, it’s a taste of summer any day of the year.

The dreary months of winter often leave us yearning for something fresh and bright, reminding us that soon spring will return. Fattoush is a simple Lebanese bread salad. Similar to the Italian salad, Panzanella, it combines flavorful vegetables and a garden of greens, tossing them with pieces of bread.

The difference in the two salads, the bread in Fattoush is pita, toasted until crisp then used to soak up the juices from tomatoes, scallions, and cucumbers.

These morsels are nestled into a bed of Romaine, Italian parsley and mint then dressed with a vibrant lemon vinaigrette.

Spring is little more than two months away – this will help hold you over!

Fattoush – Pita Bread Salad

For the salad:

3 cups chopped cherry tomatoes, about 1 pound

5 to 6 scallions, chopped, about 1 cup

1 cup peeled and chopped cucumber, about ½ large cucumber

1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus extra for seasoning as needed

2 whole pita bread rounds

3 cups chopped Romaine, about 5 to 6 leaves

1 cup chopped Italian parsley

½ cup chopped mint leaves

For the lemon vinaigrette:

¼ cup fresh lemon juice

½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

½ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

½ teaspoon sugar

For the salad:

Combine the chopped tomatoes, scallions, and cucumber together in a large mixing bowl. Add 1 teaspoon kosher salt and stir to blend well. Let the vegetables sit for 10 minutes to release their juices.

Toast the pita bread in a skillet over medium heat until lightly crisped on the outside. When the bread is cool enough to handle tear it into bite-size pieces and scatter in the bottom of a large bowl or platter. Spoon the tomatoes, scallions and cucumber along with all the juices over the toasted pita bread. Let the bread soak up the juices for about minutes.

Add the chopped Romaine, parsley, and the mint and toss to blend the vegetables and bread together.

Drizzle enough of the lemon vinaigrette over the salad to coat the lettuce and the vegetables. Sprinkle with additional kosher salt if needed.

For the vinaigrette:

Whisk the lemon juice with the olive oil. Add ½ teaspoon kosher salt, black pepper and sugar and whisk until well blended.

Makes about ¾ cup vinaigrette.

Salad serves 4 to 6.